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Previous Volume 330:636-637 March 3, 1994 Number 9 Next

	Since this article has no abstract, we have provided an extract of the first 100 words of the full text and any section headings.

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When it comes to announcing an effective treatment for a currently untreatable disease, investigators have a grave responsibility. Bensimon et al.¹ report in this issue of the Journal that riluzole, a glutamate antagonist, increased survival in one group of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) but was not helpful in another group of patients with the same disease. Therein lies a medical mystery.

The cause of sporadic ALS is not known. A familial form accounts for about 5 percent of all cases and, in about 40 percent of the families, can be mapped to the gene for superoxide dismutase on . . . [Full Text of this Article]

References

This article has been cited by other articles:

• McDermott, M. P., Rowland, L. P. (2001). ALS defeats gabapentin: Reflections on another failed treatment. Neurology 56: 826-826 [Full Text]  
• Muir, K. W., Lees, K. R. (1995). Clinical Experience With Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonist Drugs. Stroke 26: 503-513 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• McKee, P., Fuller, G. N., Stevens, D. L., MacRae, K. D., Burgerman, R. S., Rogawski, M. A., Murphy, J. R., Bensimon, G., Lacomblez, L., Meininger, V., Rowland, L. P., Caillard, C.G., Louvel, E., Randle, J.C.R. (1994). Riluzole in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. NEJM 331: 272-274 [Full Text]